Reviewer:
Poohbah70
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favoritefavoritefavorite -
November 6, 2019
Subject:
Tom Tyler - Stiff Acting, Good Detective
Another typical Tom Tyler western, with an overused plot, average script, and below average production values. Tyler (Tom Wade), who sings a few songs at the start, and his sidekick Howard Bryant (Clem "Happy" Baldwin, who constantly complains that women are trouble, are Cattlemen's Protective Association Officers called in by Laffe McKee (John Carroll) to investigate a land transaction. McKee thought there was something strange about it and now he is missing, so Tyler is now looking for him. To complicate matters, McKee sent for his eastern dwelling, dressed-in-high-fashion-style daughter Rita Carroll (Jeanne Martel) a hard-headed, determined young lady who arrives in a stylish automobile. Her companion Marjorie Beebe (Minnie) was on track to become a star comedic actress, working for Mack Sennett, until his studio went broke in 1933 - her career then went downhill and she retired from films in 1940. She has a kind of ditzy, often bug-eyed, nervous persona that is mildly amusing at first and wears thin quickly. The villains carry the film. Forrest Taylor (Bart Carson) has that leering, mocking smile and manner that says treacherous bad guy all over. Hos henchmen Ted Lorch (Merkle), Roger Williams (Terry) and others are old hands at being bad guys and are menacing in their own ways. Yes, there is some action - gun fights, fist fights, riding there and riding back - to keep you involved.